


Not As Much As I Do

by waywardrogue



Category: South Park
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Best ship, M/M, but i may write more if i feel up to it????, i do have an idea of where it would go if i did, i love k2 okay, this was service for service's sake, ugh i am TRASH
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-06
Updated: 2017-12-06
Packaged: 2019-02-11 13:28:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12936276
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/waywardrogue/pseuds/waywardrogue
Summary: "I know this whole damn city thinks it needs you, but not as much as I do-- as much as I do." An idea floating around after Fall Out Boy's Last Of the Real Ones.It's pretty gay.





	Not As Much As I Do

**Author's Note:**

> A very special thanks to my lovely beta reader, [ TheSecondQuincy](http://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSecondQuincy/pseuds/TheSecondQuincy), who is an angel.  
> *****

“Hang on, dude.” Distant voice, warm hands on chilled skin. Precise. Knowing.

           They were supposed to stop playing superheros when they grew up- that was what had been expected. That was--  _part_ of growing up, wasn’t it? And yet sometimes nights still went like this, because Kenny  _hadn’t_ quit. He’d gotten stronger, faster,  _better_ at it.

            And Kyle must have thought something of that, because he still donned his Human Kite costume when it was needed. Kyle always called it a fluke, his “abilities” as it were, chalked it up to an accident as a kid where he took a rather nasty tumble off the roof to prove a fucking point- but something in Kenny’s eyes always seemed to move him. Sure, maybe he couldn’t do  _much_ but… he supposed it was something. Never mind that he barely had the time- he could at least try.

            This night- this was one of those nights. The kite on his back, he’d been shadowing Mysterion at a distance- not that he ever really needed help but that didn’t mean it wasn’t giving Kyle some peace of mind. But tonight was different- he’d felt it, before he heard anything: something was wrong.

            And Human Kite had swooped down to find Mysterion a bleeding mess, barely conscious. Whoever he’d tussled with wasn’t fucking around.

            _Why don’t you stop_? The conversation had been had too many times over- as themselves, as their superhero personas- 

 _I can’t_ , Kenny had said, shaking his head,  _This city needs me_. Kyle wished he’d have said any of those times that  _he_ needed Kenny too, but the words stuck. His brain stuck.

             But patching up Mysterion’s wounds as quickly as he could, hands trembled slightly, betraying the calm expression on his face, Kyle berated himself mentally for having never said anything. He knew why Kenny kept this up- he understood, on some level, that Kenny  _needed_ to do this. (He didn’t know just how deep it went, how Mysterion wouldn’t cease to be if Kenny simply stopped donning the mantle night after night, he didn’t know, couldn’t begin to know, despite whatever suspicions raised.)

              “Hang in there,” he repeated to the masked man on the ground, patching him enough to stop the bleeding before helping him up. “I’m gonna get you home- I can fix you up properly there.” Because Kenny-- Mysterion-- would need stitches for some of those. Moving him was risky but what other option was there? Kenny seemed to be coherent enough to understand-- he got to his feet, though he swayed dangerously. Worrying his lower lip between his teeth, Kyle supported the blonde as best he could with that damned kite on his back- kicking himself for not changing up his stupid costume at some point.

             The trek back to Kyle’s apartment was made in silence, attempting to keep to the shadows as they moved- better not to let anyone see the state of the vigilante. Making their way up the stairs was a slow process, though Mysterion pulled away from Human Kite to lean against the handrail.

            “Dude, you could have leaned on me,” Kyle insisted softly, fishing keys out of a pocket and unlocking the door to his third floor apartment. He hurried inside, waiting patiently for Mysterion to shuffle in after him. The door was shut gently- cautiously- and locked behind the other man. “Go into the bathroom.” Kyle’s words were gentle but stern as he unstrapped the kite from his back, setting it on the coffee table before kicking off his boots and following after Mysterion. He watched with concern as the vigilante sank down onto the closed toilet, resting his head back against the wall behind it.

            “I’m fine,” without looking at Kyle, the gruff words passed without consideration- Mysterion knew the concern on the redhead’s features without meeting his gaze. “I’ll heal.”

            “Kenny, you need  _stitches_ , dude.” Kyle didn’t catch the flinch at his name, having turned his attention to the cabinet, digging out the small red bag filled with first aid necessities. “C’mon, top off, I’ve gotta fix it before it gets bad.” The bag was set on the countertop, unzipped as Kyle began to rifle through for the things he needed. Disinfectant, for sure, and something to numb the skin so he could stitch the worst of the wounds closed. Kenny would end up with scars, undoubtedly.

            A hand on his wrist stopped him though, drawing his attention to Mysterion, who stared at him with impossibly dark eyes.

            “I told you, Kite, I’m  _fine_.” He stuck with the redhead’s superhero name, and Kyle rolled his eyes a little.

            “You’re bleeding in my bathroom, don’t be an asshole.”

            “You don’t need to keep this up for my sake,” Mysterion countered.

            “Oh pot to kettle much? Shut up and let me help you.”

             The vigilante watched him quietly for a moment, expression unreadable- then he began to shed his torn and bloody costume until he was seated in just his underwear. There was bruising along his neck, dark in the shape of hands- a similar shade bloomed over his left cheek, dried blood under his nose had been missed in the dark of the night. Green spread along his ribs to the open wound there- that one could have been much worse, but Kyle didn’t like seeing him hurt at all. Hazel eyes lingered on the wound too close to his heart, not deep enough to cause permanent damage but likely enough to still scar.

              A soft sigh escaped him as he retrieved the bacitracin, cleaning the wounds as gently but efficiently as he could. Mysterion inhaled sharply at the contact, but otherwise made no obvious sounds of discomfort- or maybe that had been made in surprise. Kyle wasn’t sure, but he worked quietly and diligently, cleaning the worst of the wounds. Wearing latex gloves, he sterilized the needle and thread, glancing up-

            “This is gonna hurt,” he warned softly, but Mysterion simply waved him on. Brows furrowed as the redhead began his work on sewing closed the other vigilante’s wounds. If it hurt, Mysterion did little more than inhale sharply and curl his fingers into his palms, willing himself not to tense and risk ruining the entire operation.

            Only after the wounds were wrapped and everything was put away did the blonde relax, exhaling deeply.

            “Thank you.”

            Kyle glanced over, smiling a little. “What’re friends for? C’mon, I’ve got some spare pajamas- you’re staying here tonight.”

            For a brief moment, it appeared as though Mysterion were going to argue, but instead he just nodded and got to his feet slowly, following Kyle out of the bathroom. The redhead pondered then- Kenny always seemed… different under the Mysterion guise, but it was hard to place what exactly it was. There was a definitive melancholy to him that didn’t seem nearly as present when he was himself, but as Mysterion it was hard to overlook.

            “You don’t have to keep shadowing me,” the gruff voice broke through his thoughts- Kyle wasn’t sure why he was keeping it up. The redhead didn’t turn as he dug out spare pajamas, a pair he’d gotten for situations-- well not  _like_ this, exactly, but nights where Kenny would crash unexpectedly. He handed the soft clothing over to the vigilante, sighing softly.

            “I’m not going to stop, dude. What if I hadn’t been there tonight?”

            Silence was the response, dark blue eyes staring him down. It always sort of irked Kyle- Kenny shot up like a weed near the end of highschool. Kyle  _used_ to be the tallest, peaking at five-foot-eight, then Kenny hit a good growth spurt and ended up towering over them all. It had been infuriating at the time, but eventually dulled to an annoyed eye-roll in response. Times like these, he was almost  _hyper aware_ of the mere inches Kenny had on him. Definitely irksome.

            Whatever waited on Mysterion’s tongue was lost- the blonde turned away, shucking off his remaining costume and tugging on the pajamas instead.

            “Take the bed,” Kyle insisted softly, walking to the door for good measure. He felt eyes on his back and it took every ounce of willpower to keep going.

            “I don’t understand you.”

            “That makes two of us.” The conversation could have been imagined, the words so soft as Kyle left his room- left Kenny alone in his room. He grabbed the spare pillow and blanket from the closet and shuffled to the couch, tossing them upon it and sighing.

            How could he sleep? His mind was a buzz with a million things, running too fast to catch onto but still leaving their mark as they came and went. Staring down at the couch, a split second decision burst through and he pivoted, walking to the back door and sliding it open to the cool night air. He stepped out onto the balcony, lighting a cigarette and leaning against the rail.

            The relationship between him and Kenny was… strange, to say the least. Having grown up together, they knew- a lot about one another, like Kyle did with Stan, but for some reason… Kenny always threw him off. Something about the blonde warmed him in ways he didn’t want to think about- because having a crush on your childhood friend was all well and good in movies, or stories, but real life? That just complicated things.

            So caught up he was in his thoughts, he didn’t notice as he was joined- Kenny emerged from the apartment, leaning on the wall a moment before walking over to stand beside Kyle.

            “Those’ll kill you, you know,” the blonde’s voice broke through his thoughts, making the redhead jump a little.

            “Je _sus_ , Kenny, you scared the shit out of me-” Kyle’s shoulders slumped. “Dude, you should be resting.”

            “Mind if I bum one?” Crooked smile, he didn’t even wait for Kyle to reply, reaching over and taking a cigarette and the lighter from the shorter man. In a fluid motion, it was between his lips and lit and the lighter returned. He’d done it many times before. Kyle caught himself staring and quickly looked away.

            “Those’ll kill you,” Kyle muttered in response, taking a drag from his own cigarette.

            “There are worse ways to die,” Kenny’s voice held a teasing hint of  _knowing_ \- Kyle wanted to press it. What did Kenny know of worse ways to die? He said it with such an underlying surety- but when Kyle looked to him, Kenny was staring up at the stars, all joking gone. The redhead took the time to study Kenny’s features- he was an attractive guy, at least in Kyle’s eyes, and that just made things worse. But there was more to Kenny than just a pretty face- he was a good guy, maybe a bit on the raunchy side from time to time, but  _goddamn_ he cared so much about people. Even looking past the whole vigilante bit, Kenny always tried to help when he could, even in small ways- seemed to be a natural nurturer in spite of everything he’d deal with growing up-- maybe it was  _because_ of everything he’d dealt with-

            Blue met hazel and Kyle’s face flooded at being caught.

            “See something you like?” Kenny teased, and Kyle tore his gaze away as quickly as he could.

            “And if I do?” The words barely left his lips before he regretted it, he kept his eyes trained on his dying cigarette. He didn’t see Kenny’s brows shoot up to his hairline, eyes widening.

            “Well,” tongue slid out and wet his lips. This was-- certainly an unexpected turn of events, “ _if_ you do, you should tell me, and we could… do something about it.”

            “Oh my god.”

            “That’s a little formal, you know, Kenny’ll do.”

            “Shut up,” Kyle groaned, turning instead to sink against the barrier of the balcony, his back pressed to it. He couldn’t believe the sheer-- why the  _hell_ had he said that? Anxiety gripped his chest in a vice, fear of damaging their life-long friendship. Vaguely, he was aware of Kenny laughing softly, and tried not to get absorbed by the sound, drawing his knees to his chest and pressing his forehead against them. A warm arm wrapped around his shoulders.

            “Ky. Don’t be so embarrassed, dude,” all the melancholy about Mysterion had faded, Kenny seemed as himself once more. And Kyle let himself be pulled awkwardly to nestle against Kenny’s side, the blonde resting his head against red curls. “Joking aside, I meant it.”

            “I’m not looking for a one night stand, Ken,” Kyle’s voice was low, but he shifted, making the lean less uncomfortable. “I--”

            “I didn’t say you were.”

            “....I really- just- I don’t  _know_ , you- make me happy.”

            “You make me happy too, Ky.”

            “And I worry about you-- doing this. I’m-- … I’m scared to lose you. At all. That’s why I never--”

            “It’s okay.” Calloused fingers found Kyle’s jaw, cupping his chin and tilting his head up. Their eyes met again, impossibly blue found striking hazel, and silence fell between them. Kyle’s eyes never left Kenny’s face, and likewise-- both seemed to be searching the other for something, waiting for someone to move, to say something, to  _do_ something-

            It was difficult to pinpoint who moved first. Kenny’s hand was still loosely holding Kyle’s chin, never intending to make him feel like he couldn’t pull away if he wanted to, and at some point, one of Kyle’s hands had found its way to gripping Kenny’s shirt. The shift was seamless, and the contact was like electricity- lips collided like comets, Kyle was certain his heart was going to beat right out of his chest with the rate it was hammering away.

Although the connection only lasted a few moments, when they parted, his lips still felt the tingle. Cigarette tainted breath tangled between them, Kyle’s cheeks flooded with red, Kenny grinning like a cat with cream.

            “We should  _definitely_ do that again,” he muttered, and Kyle couldn’t help the short laugh that escaped him. He was more than happy to oblige, leaning in and kissing Kenny again. Flicking away his cigarette, freed hands moved up to the back of Kenny’s neck, fingers weaving together there to hold him close. Kenny’s hands came up to cup Kyle’s cheeks, and the kiss melted from chaste to something a little more desperate, years of secret pining behind it.

            When they parted again, both parties were panting. Kyle’s hands slid from their position to rest instead on Kenny’s chest. He opened his mouth to ask  _what now_ , but closed it, deciding instead that the conversation could wait.

            “Let’s-- go back inside? It’s cold out here,” those words came instead and Kenny hummed in agreement, getting to his feet. He helped Kyle up, and the two made their way back into Kyle’s apartment. Kyle stopped at the couch, and Kenny frowned at him.

            “I don’t wanna take your bed, dude.”

            “It’s fine, you’re hurt. You need to recover.”

            “How about we share it? Nothin’ fresh, just, y’know. Cuddle with me.”

            Kyle’s face heated again, catching his lower lip between his teeth. Well… he’d be lying if he said he hadn’t thought about it before. When he looked up, Kenny had reached out to him, and-- almost shyly-- Kyle took the offered hand. Fingers intertwined as they shuffled back to the bedroom, only releasing when Kyle walked around the other side of the bed and climbed in. Once they were both situated under the blanket, Kyle closed his eyes, smiling as he felt Kenny’s arm around his waist.

            “Is this okay?” Kenny’s voice against his ear.

            “Yeah, s’nice.” Warmth made him comfortable, sleep slurred his words- and then just like that, Kyle had fallen asleep.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading my short service-for-service's-sake thing. I think I might write more eventually, but as of right now this is what we've got. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.


End file.
